Tara

Story: This is the story of one woman's struggle against prejudices in her village.

Review: Tara (Rekha Rana) lives a fairly ordinary and peaceful existence in a village called Tanda along with her husband (Shroff), who brews booze for a living. The two are very much in love and life is peaceful. But things are not meant to remain that way for long. His profession gets him into trouble one day, when they are asked to make a larger-than-normal batch. It is a high-risk operation that can land them all into trouble. When her husband is hauled into jail after a police raid, along with a number of other men, life turns upside down for Tara.

After floundering in penury and battling against feelings of loss and sorrow, she decides to take charge of her life and becomes aggressive. The experiences that she goes through are metaphorical for having her mettle tested. She'll hock her jewellery for cold cash and go to any lengths to survive. The message attempted to convey here is that you either stand up for yourself and risk alienation by your peers or just look the other way and do nothing. Her problems are faced by several other fellow villagers.

The film, of course, revolves around Tara and she does give it her best shot. But the performances from most of the other cast members are either unconvincing or, in an attempt to come across as earnest, are over-dramatized. The director probably wants the viewers of this film to empathise with the condition of the protagonist, given all the nasty things she goes through, but it fails. The song sequences seem mostly unnecessary and in some instances, serve as a distraction.

Films are conceived with an idea. In this case, it should probably have been left as one because its execution leaves much to be desired.